Enclosed Trailer Build, toy hauler, camper, etc.

Bruce, I'll have to check out your trailer some time. I want to put in some fold down bunks like you mentioned, but I'm going to have to lay out the inside floor plan and see what I can make work.   I only have about 75" of inside width to work with, besides Donalee and I will have the full size bed in the back

Mike, I do like the plywood better and I do want to use it, but limited funds might dictate the osb until sometime in the future. The front V space is where I'm planning the shower/latrine (actually, the Lug-a-loo for now). It is naturally lower than the rest of the trailer floor and I'm thinking of fabricating a custom shaped fiberglass floor for it. I need this space uncluttered so that I can walk around the front of the jeep and get it strapped down to the d-rings, so cabinets, etc. probably aren't practical here.

I have solar panels in the plan as well. That's also justification for maintaining a flat roof (or so I'm telling myself). I'm not up to speed on what I need in that department yet, but I'll be researching that soon. I'll wire it with inverter(s), etc. so I'll be flexible wherever I go. I think I will recess the batteries somewhere below the floor to keep them out of the way, with an inside access panel.

I will be putting in two 30"x 22" sliding, screened windows, one on each side. I would have already framed in for them, but I'm not exactly sure where I want them located yet. I wanted to work on my inside layout a little more before I install them. I think I want one where we can sit at a table, eat, look out and watch the deer playing, or bears romping, or whatever. Another big reason for the windows is to help facilitate air flow through the trailer. I'm hoping with two roof vents and two large windows and good insulation, that it will be somewhat comfortable inside. I DO NOT want an air conditioner as everyone that sees me building this thing has asked. This trailer is for utility with a little bit of creature comfort (mainly for Donalee) and not for a home away from home. I desire to get away and not bring it with me.

Kate, I don't know where they will let me squat this thing, but as long as Donalee is comfortable, I'm a happy man

Tom, no plans for a door on the drivers side, at least not now. There is almost a foot on either side of the jeep once I pull it in. I'm still a couple of years away from the half century mark, so I think (?) I'm still spry enough to hop around and squeeze by to the front of the jeep without too many issues. If I build one from scratch it will be a little wider for that very reason.

We sleep on the air mattresses when we camp now, so they might get used until we find the right mattress for this setup.

Its about a hundred degrees today. So no work on the trailer today, but I did get a few things done in the last couple of days. I've started constructing the fold-down ramp back door. I'm using 2x2x 3/16" angle and some that is 1/4" thick. I'm hoping that with the 3/4" osb flooring this will be sufficient to load the jeep without any sag. We'll see soon enough. I don't like the garage door type spring assists so I'm using large hinge springs instead and making my own hinges. I'll show those in some future posts. These springs will allow unencumbered ramp access without having the side assist cables in the way. Here's a few pics of the ramp door construction. Don't tell the Colonel, but there might be a few pieces of some old WWII army bed frame steel used in the construction of the ramp door. I might have run out of angle iron, and might have had some grey US steel laying around from another project.


Remodels and modifications to existing projects, either home, jeeps, or trailers are always more difficult than building from scratch. This project is no different. I would be much further along than I am had I built this from the ground up. Case in point, I wanted to build the trailer wider than I did, but I would have had to completely deconstruct the entire side frame rails, which was essentially having to start all over with the build, so I didn't. I ended up using the existing side rails and constructing/framing the walls from there. So what this does is create a gap at the bottom of the wall, which will let critters in and insulation out. Here's a pic of before the fix and after.



Here's a shot looking down into the wall space with the critter/insulation trap in place and a simulated outside wall.


More to come.

Another mattress option would be to go on ebay and get whatever thickness and size foam block you wanted for a mattress, and get a mattress cover to fit it.  Nancy and I did that.  We use army cots for our bed frame.  We put a cot pad on each cot, with the cots side by side, then put a double bed foam pad over both cots.  Each pad is 4 inches thick.  Makes a nice soft bed.  Cover with sheets and blankets and your ready for a good night's sleep.  You could do the same on the bedframe of your own design.

Nice build Rick, I admire your welding skills. What is the load rating of your axles? If you plan to have holding tanks for water and waste water is heavy. When mine is loaded with water, food, fuel, and the 3B it is heavy. It has two 5000lb axles and 10 ply 16" tires. Both axles have brakes.

Thx, Grumpy. My axles are Rockwell 3500 lb. no brakes yet, but I plan to install a set. I'm not installing any tanks (fresh or greywater, either one) at this point, but after a few shakedown trips I might change my mind. I want to keep things minimal if possible, not carrying too much stuff. I'd have to buy a new pickup if I get carried away loading this trailer up and that isn't in the budget at this time.

Sparky, I don't have a build thread yet. I've been meaning to post one up, but I seem to always have a project that pops up instead. After this trailer build, I'll see if I can't get one started.

Thx, John. I know diesels are the way to go for haulin heavy stuff, but I just don't like 'em. They are noisy, stinky, black everywhere, etc. I'm going to keep the haul weight down and just muster thru with the gas engine. I make less than a dozen trips per year with this rig so a big haul vehicle (even a used one) just wouldn't be justifiable.   Yeah, I've seen the size of 5th wheel campers grow and grow over the years to full size houses. Is that really "getting away"? How do you "camp" in one of those!?!?!

Hope to have some update pics posted later today.
Rick

   I should've done that when I had the zebra Jeep!

So here's some shots of the aluminum panels. I had originally designed the first sheet to wrap around the back corner for a seamless corner, but that didn't work out as planned. I took two panels to the sheet metal guy to bend 90s in each of them. He bent the first 90 and as I was loading it up in the truck, I noticed that it was actually broke. Apparently, this aluminum is pretty high grade tensile strength and needs a little bit of radius to it. I didn't know that at the time, so I didn't have him bend anything else. So now, all my corners will just have to be trimmed out.





Turns out that this siding cuts very easy with a jig saw, sawzall, or circular saw. Thank goodness! I attached the siding with Phillips pan head 3/4" #10 sds. Seems very solid with no waves to speak of. This thicker siding (0.050") really is good stuff if you can get it.

Yeah Tom, that white IS bright. I got a sunburn on my face when I was cutting and installing it in these 100 deg days because it's so reflective! Interesting note, however, the solar reflectivity coefficient of this polar white is around 76 while the red of the fenders is about 48. This is empirically borne out when you touch each of these colors. Today when it was 104 deg. the fenders were impossible to touch for more than a second or two; the white panels were almost cool to the touch. I'm hoping this will aid in keeping the inside "naturally" cooler.

I will probably use a combination of batt insulation and expanded polystyrene foam board, based upon location, e.g. walls vs ceiling. I'll cover that more in future posts. I will probably use 1/4" osb for the ceiling and walls, although I want to use A grade (knotless) plywood. Funds will dictate that more than anything.